Medieval Ever After

by Kathryn Le Veque

  “Open the door!” he bellowed. There was no response. “Brenna, open this door or I will kick it in!”

  Alex and Brodie kicked in the door, and Robbie followed right behind them with several other guardsmen. Alex froze the instant the door fell. There was a dagger at his wee wife’s throat. Kenneth. Time stood still for him. He saw the sweat on her brow, the fear in her eyes, and the fine trembling in her fingers. He met her blue eyes and willed her to be strong. He wanted her to know how much he loved her. He tried to tell her with his eyes, but he felt like a failure.

  He had failed his wife in more ways than one. How could she ever forgive him? He had promised to protect her from her stepbrother, and now the man had returned to threaten her and their bairn.

  Kenneth was a dead man. Alex’s focus returned to him and he stared at his enemy. “What do you want, MacDonald?”

  “I want to make you pay for what you did, Grant, and my revenge is just moments away. I lost everything because of you. I lost my friend and all my guards. As soon as this whore drops the bairn, I will kill them both while you watch.”

  Every muscle in his body tensed and fury coursed through his veins. His eyes turned fiercely dark as he stared at his wife. He willed her to give him what he needed. The next moment, Madeline turned her head and let out another blood-curdling scream right into her stepbrother’s ear.

  Kenneth started for a second, providing Alex with the only opening he needed. Reaching over, he grabbed Kenneth by the shoulders and threw him as hard as he could against the far wall near the window. Kenneth was momentarily stunned, but he quickly stood up. When he did, he saw the three huge Grant brothers all lunging for him simultaneously.

  Kenneth turned and jumped out the window.

  He screamed all the way down, but then there was only silence. Everyone in the room froze. “Alex, please!” Maddie huffed out, her face red.

  Brenna started to shove everyone out the door.

  “Robbie, make sure he is dead!” Alex ordered. When Brenna tried to push him out of the room, too, he stood fast. “Nay, Brenna, I stay!” he insisted. “My wife just had a dagger at her throat.” Gazing at Maddie, he strode over to the bed and said softly, “I need to tell Maddie that I love her. That I have always loved her.” He leaned over the bed and kissed her soundly.

  Maddie gaped at her husband and smiled. “I love you, too, Alex. But right now, I have more important things to do. Your son wants out,” she ground out through her teeth as she pushed again.

  Alex glanced at his sister, then at his wife, and did the unthinkable. He picked up his wife, sat down on the bed, and settled his wife in front of him. He positioned himself so as not to be in the way of the babe. “I am not leaving, and I do not think anyone here can force me out.”

  “Then help me push, would you please.” Maddie shouted as her body heaved again.

  Brenna and Alice lifted the sheet and got Maddie in position for the birth. Each time she pushed, Alex could feel the strain on her body. He wished he could assist her. Marveling at the amount of stamina of his wee wife, he whispered his love into her ear whenever she had to push and let her grip his hands.

  “One more push, Maddie, I think.” Alice cried. “I can see the bairn’s head.”

  With Maddie’s next push, the bairn gushed from her body, and she leaned back against her husband in relief. Alex wrapped his arms around her and kissed her cheek as he wiped the sweat from her brow. They both held their breath until they heard the wee one cry.

  “You have a son, Alex! He is beautiful, Maddie.” Brenna swiped at her tears as she cleaned up the squalling bairn and handed him to his parents.

  Tears flowed from Maddie’s eyes as she looked at their son. “Oh, Alex, he is so beautiful, isn’t he?”

  “Aye, he is,” the proud father said.

  “You do not mind that he is not a lass?” Maddie pleaded.

  “Nay, nothing could make me happier than the sight of our wee lad in your arms, my love.” He leaned in and kissed them both.

  “Oh, Alex, it’s starting again! Oh, Alice, I have to push again!” she announced as her body heaved once more.

  Brenna shouted, “Twins! Two bairns. Keep pushing, Maddie.”

  “Two?” Alex couldn’t believe what he’d just heard. He glanced at his wee wife as she began to push again. “Another bairn, wife?”

  A few minutes later, Alex held their firstborn and Maddie held their second son. “I hope I am done now, Alice,” looking at their two boys with eyes full of wonder.

  After the afterbirth came out, they sent Alex out with one son in each arm so they could clean the bed and get Maddie washed up. They slipped a fresh night rail on her and allowed her to relax on the bed.

  “You did beautifully,” Alice said as she kissed Maddie’s brow. “How I wish your mother could be here.”

  “I think my mother is here, Alice. I can feel her spirit with me.”

  ***

  Alex beamed with pride as he showed his new sons off to his brothers and Jennie. He let his wee sister hold one bairn with Brodie’s guidance.

  “I think one looks like you, Alex, and the other looks like Maddie!” Jennie decided. “What are their names?”

  “Maddie and I will decide when we get a moment alone. She is quite exhausted right now.”

  “Amazing,” said Robbie. “What a day! I still do not understand it all, but it ended well.”

  “I will worry about that another day,” Alex said. “Today is for my new family.”

  A little later, Brenna came downstairs and told Alex he could return to his wife. She picked up one bairn, and Alex followed with the other lad, hardly able to take his eyes off his newborn son. He marveled at how he could almost hold the wee babe in one hand. He loved to put his finger in his son’s hand so he could squeeze it. Strong laddie! Brenna walked in first and gave Maddie their first born. Alex followed with the second bairn. Brenna and Alice took their leave to give the couple some time alone.

  Madeline was propped up in bed looking radiant. Alex had never seen his wife look more beautiful. He sat down on the bed next to her and set their other son down between them.

  “Maddie, I am so sorry. I did not protect you as I vowed I would.” Guilt washed over him as he took his wife’s face in his hands and kissed her tenderly.

  “Husband, I could not be happier than I am at this moment. You did protect me. It was you who saved me from my evil stepbrother. So many things could have gone wrong, yet here we are with not one, but two healthy lads to love. I would prefer to forget all the bad things that happened today and never mention them again. This day is the day our sons were born and we should rejoice in that.”

  Alex locked eyes with his wife. “I love you, Maddie. You are the Highlander of my heart. You have the strongest spirit of anyone I know. You were brilliant, love.”

  Maddie touched her husband’s cheek tenderly. “And I will always love you, Alex. You are my heart.”

  She glanced at the bairns in their arms. “Alex, we have to name our sons. What do you think? We need two names.”

  “I don’t know, love. What do you think? You choose, I cannot.”

  “What about James after my father, and John after your father?”

  “I think that is a splendid idea,” he said.

  Maddie kissed her husband again, but their firstborn started to fuss. “I think your son is hungry, Alex.” She untied her gown and settled her son at her breast. He latched on quickly and was quite happy suckling at his mother’s breast.

  Alex studied their second son and said, “You will have to learn to share, wee one.”

  He moved behind his wife again, and after much maneuvering, held his second son to Maddie’s other breast.

  Maddie giggled, leaned against her husband, and sighed. Life didn’t get any better than this.

  THE END

  ABOUT KEIRA MONTCLAIR

  Keira Montclair is the pen name for an author who lives in Florida with her husband.

  Keira
loves to hear from her readers. Stop by her website at www.keiramontclair.com to sign up for her newsletter. She also has a Facebook page at Keira Montclair, Author.

  See her view of her characters and the settings for this novel at her Pinterest page. http://www.pinterest.com/KeiraMontclair/

  Feel free to contact her at keiramontclair@gmail.com. She promises to respond to all emails.

  HIGHLANDER’S RECKONING

  EMMA PRINCE

  TITLES BY

  EMMA PRINCE

  THE SINCLAIR BROTHERS TRILOGY

  Highlander’s Ransom (Book 1)

  Highlander’s Redemption (Book 2)

  Highlander’s Return (Bonus Novella, Book 2.5)

  Highlander’s Reckoning (Book 3)

  HIGHLAND BODYGUARDS SERIES

  The Lady’s Protector (Book 1)

  Book 2 coming summer 2016!

  VIKING LORE SERIES

  Enthralled (Viking Lore, Book 1)

  Shieldmaiden’s Revenge (Viking Lore, Book 2)

  The Bride Prize (Viking Lore, Book 2.5)

  Desire’s Hostage (Viking Lore, Book 3)

  OTHER BOOKS

  Wish upon a Winter Solstice (A Highland Holiday Novella)

  HIGHLANDER’S RECKONING

  CHAPTER ONE

  Scottish Highlands

  Late January, 1308

  Daniel examined the unbroken seal of red wax on the letter he had just been handed. The seal depicted a man on horseback, brandishing a raised sword in one hand and a shield in the other. It was a fitting seal for a warrior-King like Robert the Bruce.

  Breaking the seal, Daniel tilted the letter toward the light of the fire that blazed in the hearth.

  The King was done indulging Daniel’s delays. At first, the Bruce’s letters had patiently laid out his plans for Daniel, praising the youngest brother in the loyal and powerful Sinclair clan’s ruling family and emphasizing that an honor was being bestowed upon him for his family’s service to the cause for independence.

  But after Daniel’s claims to already be occupied with running his uncle’s keep and training his young cousin in the ways of leadership, the Bruce’s letters took a different tack. They were filled with descriptions of Loch Doon’s beauty and strength as a stronghold in the southwest. Wouldn’t Daniel prefer to run his own castle in the Bruce’s stead rather than train another how to rule?

  The Bruce was clever, Daniel would give him that. The appeal to Daniel’s desire to lead in his own right had almost been enough to halt his delay tactics and take up the task the Bruce had charged him with. But there was still one part of the Bruce’s plan that Daniel simply couldn’t abide.

  Forced marriage to some Lowland chit who was probably more English than Scottish.

  Even the thought of it made Daniel cringe internally.

  Of course, the Bruce’s letters had expounded on the lass’s rumored beauty, but Daniel knew his King well enough to put little stock in it. He should feel honored that the Bruce even bothered to try to entice and cajole Daniel rather than simply ordering him to travel to the Lowlands, secure Loch Doon from the dubiously aligned Gilbert Kennedy, and marry Kennedy’s daughter. Doing so would ensure that the man would stay in his place and remain loyal to the Bruce.

  Apparently, though, the time for ordering had arrived. There were no more angles, no more delays, no more tactics to try to avoid his fate. He supposed he could beg the King to give him a reprieve until spring—even now a fierce storm howled outside the keep’s stone walls—but he very much doubted that his complaints about the weather would sit well with a man who had been living in a mobile camp for more than a year.

  Daniel let the letter flutter into the hearth. He didn’t need to read it again. He knew his duty. He would travel to the Lowlands, marry the Kennedy lass, and bring Loch Doon firmly under the Bruce’s control. But perhaps most important—and most secret—for the cause, he would prepare to lay siege to the nearby castle of Dunbraes, which was currently being held by the English bastard Raef Warren.

  “What is it, Uncle Danny?”

  Will stepped into the entryway of the great hall where Daniel stood alone. Daniel smiled faintly at the pet name the lad used for him. Though he was technically Will’s cousin, the lad had always looked up to him with awe and reverence, thinking of him more as an uncle than a cousin.

  “The time has come for me to depart, Will,” Daniel said as the lad approached.

  The boy halted halfway across the hall, a stunned look on his face. “Now? Already? Why? When?”

  Despite the desire to smile at his young cousin’s outburst, Daniel forced a stern look on his face. “What have I told you about dealing with the unexpected, lad?”

  Will swallowed. “Assess the situation, make a new plan, and…”

  “And?”

  “And never look back.”

  Though the boy tried to school his features to match Daniel’s, he ended up looking more distraught than stern. He wanted to hug the lad, but he was fourteen now. If Will was to be made ready to take over running the keep—and soon, though Daniel sent up a prayer for his uncle William’s health—he could no longer be coddled.

  “So, begin with assessing this new situation,” Daniel said levelly, folding his arms over his chest.

  Will’s brow furrowed, considering. “You have received a letter, and from what I saw, it was written on fine parchment. Was that the royal seal on the front?”

  Daniel suppressed a smile. “Aye, it was. Good, lad. Now what?”

  “You have received several such letters in the last few months. The messengers deliver them no matter what, even in the worst of storms, as we have had all winter. You are receiving important information from King Robert the Bruce. But the central Highlands has been securely behind him almost from the beginning of his campaign, so he isn’t trying to convince you of his cause.”

  At Daniel’s silent nod, the lad went on.

  “But perhaps he wants you to do something for him. And you just said that you are leaving. Has he ordered you to join him?” Will’s eyes lit up with the excitement that only a lad who had never seen battle could have at the thought of joining the Bruce.

  “Close. He has asked me to serve him in a way that would take me to the Lowlands,” Daniel replied, pleased with the lad’s sharp perception.

  “The Lowlands?” Will wrinkled his nose in distaste, and this time, Daniel couldn’t quite stop the smile that itched at the corners of his mouth.

  “Aye. I am to take charge of Loch Doon, King Robert’s family keep.”

  Will’s eyes rounded. “King Robert is personally asking you to oversee his castle? Just you?”

  “Aye, he is. It is a great honor, so I must obey the King’s command with all haste.”

  Though Daniel gave no hint with either his voice or his features that he was stretching the truth, Will’s eyes went from rounded wonder to narrowed suspicion.

  “Then why did the King send you so many letters? Why have they been coming for months?”

  “Good, lad,” Daniel replied with a wry smile. “I have been delaying, in part because I wanted to make sure I am doing my duty to both you and your father. I made a commitment to see that you were properly trained, and I can’t very well break my word.”

  Will nodded soberly. At least Daniel could be sure that his lessons about honor, duty, and the importance of keeping one’s word would stick with the lad.

  Daniel sighed and let his eyes take in the young man in front of him. He still thought of his little cousin as a boy. Daniel had been here at his uncle William’s keep for almost ten years. That realization struck him. He had only been a few years older than young Will was now when he left his family back at Roslin Castle to help run his uncle’s keep and train his cousin.

  It had been hard to give up his youthful adventures and freedom, especially when it meant leaving Robert and Garrick, his two older brothers, and his cousin Burke, who was like a third brother to him. But when his uncle William had unexpectedly falle
n from a horse, rendering him nearly completely invalid, he knew it was his duty to look after his uncle and young cousin.

  Will had barely understood why he could no longer play with his father, and why his distant cousin was now not only running the keep, but training him in the responsibilities of leadership as well.

  But that was almost ten years ago, Daniel reminded himself. Will was no longer a wide-eyed little boy. In fact, just in the last year, Will had grown nearly a foot. Of course, the rest of him hadn’t quite caught up yet. He was thin and uncoordinated, but he showed promise with the sword, and his mind was sharper than his blade. Though part of him didn’t want to admit it, Daniel was actually confident in Will’s ability to take over running the keep in his father’s stead.

  “Perhaps I have fulfilled my commitment to train you already,” Daniel said quietly.

  A look of panic crossed Will’s still-smooth face. “I’m not ready to be in charge.”

  “You’ll never feel fully ready, lad,” Daniel said, tousling Will’s blond curls. “But every man must step out on his own one day.”

  Hell, he made it sound easy and noble, even while he was dodging his King’s orders.

  Will’s eyes drifted to the fire, and a somber silence settled between them. But then Will jerked his head back up and shot a sharp look at Daniel.

  “You said part of the reason you were delaying was because of your commitment to train me. What is the other part of the reason?”

  Daniel cracked a smile. The lad would be a truly great strategist one day. “I will also be married,” he said simply.

  “Married?”

  Daniel erupted in laughter at the look of horror that contorted Will’s face.

  “Aye, married. It suits the King’s plans, so I must follow his command.”

  Daniel suspected that Will was only just starting to awaken to the draw of the opposite sex, so to tease him, he added, “One day you may find the idea of marriage slightly less repugnant, lad. Perhaps with someone like Sarah, the pretty blonde serving lass your eyes seem to follow?”